Rob has a master’s degree in International Affairs from Columbia University, studied in the MFA Acting program at the Actor’s Studio Drama School in New York, founded several companies, and wrote two books, including one nominated for the prestigious Franklin Award. Rob has had speaking roles on the Syfy series Z Nation and Mickey and the Bear, which premiered at SXSW and Cannes. He wrote, directed, produced, and starred in the multi-award-winning short film Method, which premiered at the Chelsea Film Festival, where Academy Award-winning screenwriter (Crash and Million Dollar Baby) awarded Rob Best Screenplay. Rob was also nominated for Best Actor and Best Director at the Beaufort International Film Festival, which had nearly 20,000 attendees. Among Rob’s more esoteric experiences, he backpacked into Egypt two weeks before the war in Iraq, consulted Bhutan on its public advertising policy, and interned at Rolling Stone Magazine. Rob has traveled to 50+ countries and speaks four languages.

Heather started her bright producing career at the tender age of 16, working as lead designer for her parent’s sign company. A graduate from Gonzaga University, she graduated with a dual major in Political Science and Philosophy; however, business called her back. Heather is now the vice president of Intrepid Sportswear, one of the largest niche team-apparel companies, and is involved in a number of successful start-ups. The Year of the Dog is Heather’s film producing debut but expect more to follow.

The Year of the Dog is Michael Peterson’s debut feature film. A graduate of Montana State University film school, Michael began his career in Hollywood over 20 years ago as an SFX make-up artist. For six years, Michael ran his own studio, Image Alchemy Productions, the largest in Arizona, where he and his staff specialized in costumes, props, SFX make-up, and effects. Michael moved into producing, directing, and writing film and television content, earning a master’s in Film Producing and Directing from Montana State University. Since then, he has optioned numerous screenplays, produced web and television content, and directed critically regarded short films. He has also co-produced two feature films and, in 2018, won the prestigious Emerging Scholar grant for filmmaking.

Andy graduated from Juilliard with a BFA in Acting in 1998 and has an MFA in Directing from the University of Washington. He has acted in numerous roles on Broadway, including in Blue Man Group, many commercials, as well as film and TV. He has taught acting and directing for 20 years at Seattle University, Cornish College of the Arts, Freehold Theatre, and now at Interlochen School of the Arts, where he specializes in directing professional Shakespeare productions.

With a bachelor’s degree in Zoology and a master’s in Science and Natural History Filmmaking from Montana State University, George travels the world as a conservation biologist and filmmaker. Growing up in Australia and now based in Montana, George has produced and shot scores of documentaries and commercial and scripted works. He has worked on a surfeit of projects, including as the cinematographer for the award-winning Documentary Charged, which premiered at the Santa Barbara Film Festival. His elite clientele includes the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Rolls Royce, and the Montana Office of Tourism.

Erika started in satire as a Senior Producer at The Onion newspaper before moving into documentary, commercial, and scripted projects as a producer, editor, and cinematographer. She worked on a range of projects, including the award-winning Documentary Charged, which premiered at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, and many projects for a host of clients, including the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Ben and Jerry’s, Rolls Royce, Funny or Die, and the Detroit Pistons.

A graduate of the Montana State University film program, Andy currently resides in Bozeman and works with Filmlites Montana, the largest grip and inventory lighting service in five states, as a warehouse manager, electrician, and event lighter for motion pictures. Andy has worked as a grip and lighting technician on a dozen documentary, commercial, and scripted television shows and films, including The Revenant, starring Tom Hardy and Leonardo DiCaprio, Yellowstone, starring Kevin Costner, Wildlife, Certain Women, and Walking Out.

A second-generation Montanan, originally from Red Lodge, William “Lake” Springstead has worked in television as well as documentary and narrative film for a decade. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Film and Photography from Montana State University, William has worked in production as a sound mixer and post-production as an assistant editor, audio engineer, and sound designer. As an assistant editor, he cut the award-winning documentaries Unbranded (2015), Charged: The Eduardo Garcia Story (2017), and Youth v Gov (2020). William was one of the recipients of a Northwest Regional Emmy for Commercial Single Spot My Small Town for his work as a sound designer. His client roster includes the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, the Montana Office of Tourism, and brands such as Oakley, Patagonia, YETI, and Vans Shoes.

Jon has spent 35 years as an exotic (tigers, cougars, leopards) and domestic animal trainer (you name it, he’s trained it) for film and television, where he deftly achieves key performances while maintaining the absolute well-being of all animals involved in the production. His animal-first advocacy work in Hollywood has lent itself to many lovable and memorable moments in iconic films and shows. His projects include Lethal Weapon 2, Frasier, Ellen, Friends, Thirtysomething, L.A. Law, Lambchop’s Playhouse, and Doogie Howser, as well as the feature films Terminator 2, Twister, Little Nicky, Crazy Beautiful, Two Days in the Valley, Point Break, Iron Will, and Mars Attacks. He’s worked with Mel Gibson, Adrien Brody, Antonio Banderas, John Malkovich, and Patrick Stewart, to name a few.

Ainsley Sevier, Production Manager, believes in the necessity and impact of storytelling. She is a professional right-hand-man, with organizational and people skills that help creatives achieve their goals. Working as an actor, teacher, classically-trained musician, and in production, she has traveled the US participating in diverse music ensembles, community and professional theatre, opera, television, and film. Ainsley moved to Butte, America in 2017 to help manage the independent film "Brown", and was welcomed into the unique, hardworking Montana film community. In between productions, Ainsley works in non-profits, sings with the Butte Big Band, travels to visit her 6 younger siblings and their families, and co-hosts the long-form interactive livestream, Post-Orthodoxy. On Year of the Dog, it was Ainsley's pleasure to help our production team manage all the complexities of making a movie, and advocate for the wellbeing and development of our cast, crew, vendors, and locations.

A US Air Force Veteran, Don Andrews has worked in post production for more than 10 years. Don was lucky enough to work for Laika Entertainment, on the academy award nominated film, The Boxtrolls, as well as working in advertising for Nike, Adidas and Autodesk, and was a featured editor on the award winning feature documentary, Foodtruck the Movie. Don now lives in Montana and works primarily as a producer, editor, writer and festival director (Covellite Film Festival in Butte).

Tim Karplus graduated from Oregon State University in 2010 with a degree in Music Composition, Recording & Editing and has spent the last decade working as a performing musician and record producer in Portland, OR. He has toured and recorded with notable regional acts such as Anna Tivel, The Weather Machine, and Haley Johnsen, and is the audio engineer for the podcast Storybound, which has been featured in the New York Times. The Year of the Dog is his feature film scoring debut.

Darwin Lumbattis is a Butte-based Army Veteran who served 16 years including active-duty combat in Iraq from 1990-1992 before retiring as a Calvary Scout. He is an avid dog-safety advocate and founder of the Rocky Mountain Working Dogs. Darwin served as a key advisor on all matters concerning weight pulling — he also proved his acting chops during an audition and landed a key speaking role in the film. We are incredibly grateful to and for him.